Burslem School Of Art

Burslem School of Art was an art school in the centre of the town of Burslem in the Potteries district of England. Students from the school played an important role in the local pottery industry. Pottery was made on the site of the school from the early Middle Ages. The venue was refurbished and re-opened for the arts in 1999. HistoryThe art school originated in 1853. In the nineteenth century each of the towns making up the (future) city of Stoke-on-Trent founded its own art school, the Burslem school moving into the Wedgwood Institute when it was completed in the 1860s. In 1905 the art school moved across the road to new purpose-built accommodation designed by A. R. Wood, a local architect. The new building with its distinctive large windows helped the art school become pre-eminent in the district. At the time of the foundation of North Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1971, Burslem School of Art was one of three sites used by the Stoke-on-Trent College of Art. However, the department of Fine Art was subsequently moved from Burslem to the Polytechnic's College Road site, thus leaving the historic Burslem building somewhat underused. The School of Art was listed in 1993 then left empty and boarded up for a time. In 1985, the school was featured in Pottery Ladies, a series of TV documentaries made for Channel 4 with the support of the Arts Council of Great Britain.

Burslem School of Art was an art school in the centre of the town of Burslem in the Potteries district of England. Students from the school played an important role in the local pottery industry. Pottery was made on the site of the school from the early Middle Ages. The venue was refurbished and re-opened for the arts in 1999. HistoryThe art school originated in 1853. In the nineteenth century each of the towns making up the (future) city of Stoke-on-Trent founded its own art school, the Burslem school moving into the Wedgwood Institute when it was completed in the 1860s. In 1905 the art school moved across the road to new purpose-built accommodation designed by A. R. Wood, a local architect. The new building with its distinctive large windows helped the art school become pre-eminent in the district. At the time of the foundation of North Staffordshire Polytechnic in 1971, Burslem School of Art was one of three sites used by the Stoke-on-Trent College of Art. However, the department of Fine Art was subsequently moved from Burslem to the Polytechnic's College Road site, thus leaving the historic Burslem building somewhat underused. The School of Art was listed in 1993 then left empty and boarded up for a time. In 1985, the school was featured in Pottery Ladies, a series of TV documentaries made for Channel 4 with the support of the Arts Council of Great Britain.